MP3: UltraChic* - "Labios de Diamante"

​Since I was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, it gives me great pleasure and pride to see the work of UltraChic*, a band based out of Miami but hailing from my homeland. The group continues to soldier on with a rock and roll racket that pays plenty of respect to the bygone heroes of Venezuelan pop like Sentimiento Muerto, as well as more current hit-makers like Zapato 3 and Caramelos de Cianuro.

Bassist Luis Golding made his bones anchoring rhythm for the aforementioned Caramelos. Now, he's taken full flight with his new outfit and its aggressive '80s-inflected Latin New Wave style, which calls to mind the better moments of Soda Stereo and Los Hombres G. As for the rest of the lineup, rums are handled by Christian Mijares, the guitars are wielded by Danny Garcia and Charlie Martini, while the vocals are by Ramon Lugo.

This new single, "Labios de Diamante" (Diamond Lips), is the Silver Surfer to the Galactus of an album the band will unleash fairly soon into the North and South American markets. It's produced by Golding and San Francisco-based Venezuelan producer Enrique Gonzalez-Muller (who boasts Taj Mahal and NIN as clients), and there's something decidedly sexy in a very Venezuelan way about the upcoming effort.

Let's face it, there's nothing sexier than sweet crude and the millions of outrageously hot Venezuelan women the country produces. Now add Ultrachic* to the list of great things from Venezuela that not even a bona fide asshole of Hugo Chavez's caliber can fuck with.